ANNAPOLIS, Md. - Gov. Larry Hogan announced Wednesday at Tradepoint Atlantic that the Maryland Department of Labor is being awarded the American Rescue Plan Good Jobs Challenge grant for $22.9 million.
The grant will fund a job expansion project aimed at supporting Maryland’s offshore wind industry. Maryland’s project is one of 32 chosen nationwide out of more than 500 applicants. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo announced the winners Wednesday.
“This funding will ensure that Maryland employers and jobseekers stand ready to meet the demands of the flourishing offshore wind industry, which is expected to create more than 10,000 jobs in the State of Maryland and yield an economic impact of nearly $3 billion over the next 20 years in the Baltimore area and Central Maryland alone,” said Hogan.
The Maryland Works for Wind program will partner with leading employers like Chesapeake Shipbuilding, Crystal Steel Fabricators, US Wind, and Orsted Offshore North America – and seven local unions – to build a training model that meets the needs of employers and local communities. The model will target people that were formerly incarcerated, veterans, disconnected youth, and other underserved groups. Maryland Works Wind plans to place and/or train more than 4,300 Marylanders, leverage $30 million for resources, and develop economic activity in 18 of Maryland’s 24 jurisdictions.
The governor was joined at today’s event by U.S. Department of Commerce Deputy Secretary Don Graves, Maryland Secretary of Labor Tiffany Robinson, Rep. Kweisi Mfume, Rep. John Sarbanes, and Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski.
“The Biden Administration applauds Maryland Department of Labor’s efforts to boost the state’s growing offshore wind industry,” said Deputy Secretary Graves. “This EDA investment will create new job training opportunities that will lead to good-paying, clean energy jobs for local workers.”
This project follows other workforce development efforts throughout the Hogan administration, including:
The P-TECH education model, which gives young Marylanders the opportunity to earn a no-cost, two-year associate degree simultaneously with their high school diploma, while also getting the benefit of mentors and paid summer internships.
Eliminating the four-year degree requirement for thousands of state jobs, a first-in-the-nation workforce initiative to promote opportunities for individuals who have a high school diploma or equivalent, and have developed their skills through alternate routes such as community college, apprenticeships, military service, boot camps, and most commonly, on the job.
An expansion of registered apprenticeships to record levels, offering apprenticeships not just in the construction trades, but also in cybersecurity, information technology, digital and social media, and healthcare occupations.
More than doubling funding for EARN Maryland, the state’s nationally-recognized program that connects partners with industry stakeholders.